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Wednesday, April 04, 2007

Somerville Poets Will Be Well-Represented at the Boston National Poetry Festival


SOMERVILLE POETS WILL BE WELL- REPRESENTED AT THE BOSTON NATIONAL POETRY FESTIVAL

A highlight of April/ Poetry Month is the Boston National Poetry Month Festival that for the last seven years has been held at the Boston Public Library (Copley Square). This brainchild of poet Harris Gardner will be held April 14 to 15 this year. Among the over fifty readers there will be several accomplished Somerville Poets who will make their appearance on the stage. Afaa Michael Weaver, whose work was recently featured in Poetry magazine, Gloria Mindock, the founder of the Cervena Barva Press, Tim Gager, the co-founder of the Somerville News Writers Festival, and Lloyd Schwartz, U/Mass Boston English Professor, C. D. Collins, as well as yours truly, Doug Holder, will strut their poetic stuff. Every festival includes an open mike if you are brave enough to read your own work, and a book table with books ready to be signed by the featured readers.

Every year at the festival I have hosted, read, and manned the book table. During this time I have met an incredible array of poets of all stripes: including: X.J. Kennedy, Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Franz Wright, as well as well-known and lesser- known regional poets. This year the festival will include former National Poet-Laureate Maxine Kumin. I can’t think think of any event of its kind that attracts so many folks from the academic, non-academic, Slam, and traditional spoken word schools or venues. If you are new to the community and want to familiarize yourself with the scene, or if you have been away awhile and want to have a reunion of sorts, or if you simply want to be the proverbial fly-on-the-wall, then this event is exactly what the doctored ordered.



For more information go to: http:www.tapestryofvoices.com or call 617- 306-9484.

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